Law & Order: SVU Planning a Trayvon Martin/Paula Deen Episode

Thursday

Aug 22, 2013 at 12:18 PM

Law Order: SVUis planning an upcoming episode that will combine elements of theTrayvon Martin shootingas well asallegations of racism againstPaula Deen,Entertainment Weeklyreports.The episode features guest stars includingCybill Shepherd,Jeffrey TamborandSonja Sohn. Shepherd will play a character that shares traits with ...

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Law & Order: SVU is planning an upcoming episode that will combine elements of the Trayvon Martin shooting as well as allegations of racism against Paula Deen, Entertainment Weekly reports.

The episode features guest stars including Cybill Shepherd, Jeffrey Tambor and Sonja Sohn. Shepherd will play a character that shares traits with Deen as well as Martin's shooter, George Zimmerman. Tambor will play her lawyer, executive producer Warren Leight tells EW.

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"[Jeffrey] Tambor is a defense attorney representing a very high-profile celebrity woman chef who thought she was being pursued by a rapist and turned around it was a teenager. And she shot him," Leight told EW.

According to set photos published by BuzzFeed this week, the episode will also feature protest scenes based on the demonstrations that took place after the Martin shooting.

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"When the script was published it became a litmus test for everybody here," Leight says. "It was really interesting to see people read that script and have different interpretations about who did what and whether or not they deserved prison for it. It was fascinating."

Law & Order: SVU kicks off its 15th season on Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 9/8c on NBC. The Martin/Deen episode, called "American Tragedy," is scheduled to air in October.